Southern Environmental Law Center Announces Senior Attorney Gil Rogers as Director of Georgia

Atlanta, GA-The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC) is pleased to announce that Senior Attorney Gil Rogers will lead SELC’s future efforts as the new director of its Georgia and Alabama offices.

“I am thrilled to be taking on this new role, and look forward to building on SELC’s track record of success in protecting the wealth of natural resources and special places throughout Georgia and Alabama,” said Gil Rogers.

“As someone who has had the pleasure of working with Gil for the past 16 years, I can imagine no better person suited to take on this leadership role,” said Rick Middleton, SELC Founder and Executive Director.

A native of Birmingham, Alabama, Gil is a graduate of Princeton University and Harvard Law School, and joined SELC as an intern in 2000 in the headquarters office in Charlottesville, Virginia.

Gil has worked within a variety of SELC’s program areas throughout his career, including advocating for protection of wetlands and other coastal resources, weighing in on transportation projects and pushing for more transparency around agency decision-making, and helping property owners better understand the environmental and community concerns associated with fracking as industry interest increases in northwest Georgia.

Leading SELC’s water quality and water management work for the past seven years, Gil is looked to as an authority on issues such as water pollution reduction, water supply challenges, and interstate water conflicts. He continues to actively work with a host of federal, state, and local partners and agencies to shape legislation, establish strong regulations, and improve individual projects. 

In 2002, Gil played a central role in establishing the Georgia Water Coalition (GWC) along with partners Chattahoochee Riverkeeper, Georgia Conservancy and Georgia Wildlife Federation. With a consistent presence at the Georgia General Assembly since 2003, Gil has worked alongside GWC partners, other statewide conservation groups, and elected officials in successful legislative efforts to secure drought management planning, encourage conservation, improve emergency responses, and re-establish the protective 25-foot buffer for Georgia’s marshes.

Appointed by Governor Bentley to participate on a stakeholder panel for riparian rights and other legal issues in developing Alabama’s first statewide water management plan, Gil continues to weigh in on policy decisions and potential legislation to strengthen the state’s position for negotiating water needs.

Gil’s leadership and long-standing work in both Georgia and Alabama has earned him the awards Georgia Water Conservationist of the Year and Alabama Rivers Alliance River Hero, a lifetime achievement award given to passionate individuals who have a rich history of advocating for the protection of Alabama's waterways.

“Gil brings over a decade of experience in Georgia and Alabama to this position, and a deep knowledge and understanding of environmental issues in both states,” said David Pope, who is stepping down from his role as the Director of SELC’s Georgia and Alabama offices after 10 years. “He is an excellent lawyer and will undoubtedly lead the Georgia and Alabama offices to achieve even greater success.”   

SELC is the largest environmental organization in the Southeast, with 70 attorneys in nine offices throughout six states (Virginia, Tennessee, North and South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama) and on Capitol Hill. Working at the national, regional, state, and local levels and in all three branches of government enables SELC to combine region-wide perspective and strategy with local presence and place-based action.

Through issue-based regional programs, SELC’s work encompasses clean energy and air; water; forests; the coast and wetlands; transportation, land-use and communities; and wildlife and special places. This comprehensive approach is especially crucial for the South, which has more miles and more kinds of rivers than any other region, claims half of all wetlands remaining in continental U.S., and includes the Southern Appalachian mountain forests, harboring greater diversity than any forest outside of the tropics.

By enacting and enforcing environmental safeguards, SELC is striving to ensure that a legacy of good stewardship is passed to future generations while also having a profound effect on environmental laws and policies that affect the entire country. SELC is celebrating 30 years of impressive results this year, and will continue working towards a positive vision for the South that includes a healthy environment, a strong economy, and vibrant communities.

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About the Southern Environmental Law Center:

The Southern Environmental Law Center is a regional nonprofit using the power of the law to protect the health and environment of the Southeast (Virginia, Tennessee, North and South Carolina, Georgia, and Alabama). Founded in 1986, SELC's team of more than 60 legal and policy experts represent more than 100 partner groups on issues of climate change and energy, air and water quality, forests, the coast and wetlands, transportation, and land use.
 http://www.SouthernEnvironment.com